Improvement in devices for actuating railroad-switches



T. F'. CURRY.

DEVICE FUR ACTU ATING RAILROAD-SWITCH'Ei' No.177,693. Patented May 23,1876.

ATTDFPNEX To all whom it may concern UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIoE.

THOMAS F. OOBRY, OF OOVINGTON, KENTUCKY.

IMPROVEMENT IN DEVICES FOR ACTUATING RAILROAD-SWITCHES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No, 177,693, dated May 23,1876; application filed March 31, 1876.

Be it known that I, THOMAS F. COREY, of Oovington, in the county of Kenton and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Device for Actuating Switches of Street-Railways, of which the following is a specification:

The nature of my invention consists in the construction and arrangement of a device to be attached to street-railroad cars for remov ing obstructions and changing switches while the cars are in motion, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed .to describe its construction and operation, referring to the annexed drawing, which forms a part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of my invention. Fig. 2 is a front view of the same, showing the shoe pressed down upon the rail. Fig. 3 is a view of the shoe.

A represents a shoe of substantially the form shown in Fig. 3, it bcingpointed at one end. This shoe-is secured on, or formed of,

the lower end of a rod or shaft, B, which passes through a guide,'(), and has a spiral spring, D, surrounding the same above the guide, the upper.end of said'spring being attached to a shoulder, a, on the rod, and the from it to avoid any bad joint; and it will in this position throw off any obstructions. By pressing down on the rod or shaft B the shoe A may easily be thrown down on the tram of the rail, and turned by the hand to the shoulder of the rail, and 'thus catch the tongue of the switch, and by its shape open the same.

The spring D throws the point out of the way of any curve which occurs at switches when they are opened. As soon as the hand is taken oft from the rod B the point springs above thecurve-iron and gets out of the way. When not in use the point can be raised as high as is desired, and held up by a stop, b.

This device does the work for which it is designed while the car is in motion.

Having thus fully described my invention,

what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

The point or shoe A, attached to, or being -made a part of, a rod or shaft,B, passing through a guide, 0, and provided with a spring, D, substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I at'fix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS F. COREY. Witnesses:

HIRAM F. BOWEN, GEORGE W. MGDANNOLD. 

